1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital multichannel television (TV), and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for selecting a channel of such a digital multichannel TV.
2. Description of the Related Art
An analog TV broadcasting system such as an NTSC (National Television System Committee) TV can broadcast only one program with respect to a frequency band of one determined RF (Radio Frequency) channel. However, a digital multichannel TV broadcasting system can flexibly assign a bit rate necessary for service which is necessitated, when the bit rate is required. That is, it is possible to transmit a plurality of subchannel programs in a limited transmission bandwidth of one RF channel. For example, SDTV (Standard Definition Television) programs may be simultaneously broadcast for a specific period of time through an RF channel, and an HDTV (High Definition Television) program may be broadcast for another period of time through the same RF channel. As another example, 2-subchannel SDTV programs, one-subchannel voice, one-subchannel data and one-subchannel software may be broadcast through one RF channel, or a one-subchannel SDTV program and a one-subchannel HDTV program may be broadcast through one RF channel. As such an example, there is the U.S. ATSC (Advanced Television System Committee) standard.
In the digital multichannel TV broadcasting system, a plurality of programs can be broadcast through one RF channel, and the programs may vary at any time. It is necessary to display program guide information on a monitor so that a user may select one of the programs. For this, the ATSC standard specifies an electronic program guide (EPG) to enable a user to select a desired program. A broadcasting station sends the EPG information in its RF channel. The digital TV receives and stores the EPG information and displays the EPG information according to a demand of the user. By using the EPG information, the user can confirm the subchannel programs broadcast through one RF channel and select the desired program.
However, in the digital multichannel TV broadcasting, there are a lot of channels since one RF channel may include a plurality of subchannels. Therefore, steps for selecting the channels are complicated and the user may have to press many numeral keys.